on our broadcast tonight, blizzard warning. a potentially history-making winter storm 50 million americans in its path. nearly 3 feet of snow predicted in some places. hurricane-force winds. our team is in place tonight with the latest track. the manhunt for a rogue ex cop turns sniper. the entire state of california today placed on alert, all day, after a two-day killing rampage. clear the room. a senator gives the order after protests disrupt a hearing on the subject of drones and torture and the president's pick to head the cia. and the giant comeback under way in one of the most majestic places on earth. restoring the redwood forest to its old glory. "nightly news" begins now.

from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with brian williams. good evening. and it's a busy evening on both of our coasts tonight. on the west coast in southern california, a nerve-racking and disconcerting day after three murders, two more people wounded and the word from police that one of their own, be an ex police officer, a military veteran, is targeting police officers. as a result, law enforcement there on a hair-trigger, and the state has been on alert all day. right now as we look live, the search is focused on the big bear ski area, bear mountain, in southern california. now, on the east coast, preparations are under way for a potentially history-making snowstorm. along the eastern seaboard on up to new england, it's happening the way the worst of the storms happen. two systems coming together, joining forces, blizzard warnings are posted across a wide area.

50 million americans in the path of this one before it's all over. it's where we begin tonight. meteorologist jim cantore of the weather channel is in boston. nbc's ron mott in mass. we begin there. ron, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening to you. a big rush on this story earlier today. they're expecting more tonight and in the morning as they head in to pick up things like shovels and batteries, flashlights, gas cans, ahead of what could be a top-ten winter storm of all-time. as this storm barrels eastward today, it dumped a lot of snow, in places like madison, wisconsin and chicago. where they're confused. >> one day it's 60, the next day it's 20. but we're used to it. we can handle it, we're tough. >> reporter: but it's the folks in the northeast whose mettle is about to be severely tested. for the first time in years. after an unusually mild and dry winter last season. >> palms getting sweaty, the excitement starts to build. >> reporter: from hartford to boston and elsewhere -- >> good you get a thunderstorm, you could end up with 27 inches

of snow. >> reporter: forecasters are sounding the alarm about what could be an historic storm. and those warnings were all the motivation many people needed to stock up on emergency supplies and a heavy dose of courage and patience. >> gas light, shovel. >> reporter: in brick township, new jersey, still recovering from superstorm sandy, nerves are frayed as they prepare again for storm surge. >> just really scared. terrified. >> reporter: at this boston area home depot, a much-needed shipment of ice melt arrived. >> new england tonight is struggling with the worst snowfall in its history. >> reporter: for many here, the looming storm brings back memories of the '78 blizzard that battered the region 35 years ago this week, dumping as much as 3 feet of snow, killing 100, stranding many more. fred bailis remembers it well. >> it's a cliche, but it's a perfect storm. it hit right at rush hour, it continued and it dumped a lot of snow very fast. >> reporter: city officials say they're ready for a wallop,

loading sand and salt on to trucks, a fleet that could number 900 strong at the height of the storm. airlines are bracing for major travel disruptions throughout new england. 1,100 flights already cancelled. >> we're hardened new englanders and used to these types of storms but want to remind everyone to use common sense. stay off the streets of our city. basically, stay home. >> reporter: the morning rush should be okay. just flurries in the air. but this time tomorrow night, brian, forecasters say we could see snow coming down at the rate of 2 to 3 inches an hour. >> ron mott starting us off. thanks, ron. now we go to meteorologist from the weather channel, jim cantore in boston. jim, due respect to mayor menino, i get they're hardy new englanders. with due respect to the storm. but this one could really dump a lot of snow on the city of boston. >> reporter: yeah, that's why they're very concerned, brian, that we don't have a rush hour like the one you see behind me right here. they want all the vehicles off the road by noontime tomorrow.

if this is the case tomorrow, we've got big troubles through here. let's talk about this blizzard warnings up for so many, including new york city, boston, providence, hartford and also portland, maine. remember, new york city last night on the border line of 1 to 3 inches. now we're talking about 12 to 18. let me time this out for you. as ron said, we don't expect much happening here in boston by tomorrow morning. but as we go through the day, the snow picks up early afternoon, it picks up in earnest. and by 8:00 p.m., really through that 8:00 a.m. period, is when we are going to get the full force of this blizzard. we are talking about winds that will gust 75 to possibly 100 miles per hour on the coast. snowfall rates of 2 to 4 inches per hour. anyone out in this really doesn't stand a chance. you're putting yourself in danger if you go outside. and still, by saturday night at 7:00 p.m., it will still be snowing in eastern massachusetts. the rainfall -- the snowfall forecasts here are huge, 1 to 3 inches in philly, 12 to 18 in

new york now, brian, and 24-plus in boston and providence. four storms in boston history have eclipsed 24 inches. this has a good chance at being number five. >> and another nor'easter as ron pointed out, this rain and snow and wind and high tide is going to hit all these sandy victims up and down the coast all over again. 100 days after that storm. jim cantore in boston, we'll be talking along the way. now back to southern california, where a life and death police drama has been playing out there as we said all day. it's been a tense day throughout that state. this massive manhunt has been underway for a former police officer, a military veteran, a skilled marksman, suspected of murdering three people already, shooting four police officers himself. and trying to hunt down even more. the situation is on the move as we speak. nbc's miguel almaguer is with us. miguel, what do we know. >> reporter: brian, good

evening. lapd says they are at war tonight with a man targeting law enforcement officers. 33-year-old christopher dorner, said to be a cop-killer, has said he will not stop the killings until he's dead. tonight, thousands of police officers are hunting for a man that used to be one of their own. tactical teams spread across nine counties in southern california. >> of course he knows what he's doing. we trained him. >> reporter: he's heavily armed and extremely dangerous. police say former lapd officer christopher dorner has already killed three and is gunning for more. >> this has gone far enough. nobody else needs to die. >> reporter: fired from the force in 2009 for allegedly making false statements, dorner says his dismissal was unjust. police say he names those he's targeting in this chilling manifesto, published online. the lapd has suppress the truth and it has now led to deadly consequences. >> he's probably one of the more dangerous shooters we've seen in

a long time. he has a combination of the will to do what he's doing, the ability to do it, and no particular desire to survive. >> reporter: on sunday, police say dorner murdered monica kwan and keith lawrence in a revenge killing. kwan is the daughter of a former police captain who represented dorner in his disciplinary hearing. detectives say he tried to steal a boat near san diego, possibly trying to flee to mexico. a badge, his i.d. and wallet were found in the area. >> suspect vehicle still outstanding. it's a black nissan titan. >> reporter: with a massive manhunt under way at 1:25 this morning, two lapd police officers assigned to protect the person named in the manifesto come under fire. one officer is grazed in the head. >> officer shot! multiple times! >> reporter: a short time later, a gunman opens fire on two riverside police officers. one is killed, the other critically injured. >> other officers were stopped at an intersection at a red

light when they were ambushed. >> reporter: with tensions high, police opened fire on a truck mistakenly believed to be dorner's. two women delivering newspapers are shot and injured. >> tragically, we believe this was a case of mistaken identity by the officers. >> reporter: near san diego, a navy facility was locked down when someone matched dorner's description. a false alarm. but late today, law enforcement officials say they found dorner's burned-out vehicle. s.w.a.t. teams swarmed the area near a ski resort, warning vacationers to stay in their rooms. but tonight, no sign of the suspect. that massive manhunt up in the mountains and here in the city does continue. and brian, take a look at the officers here at lapd. they are armed with their shotguns in addition to their side pistols. they have also been told those officers who ride motorcycles on the streets, they have been pulled into squad cars for their protection. brian? >> miguel almaguer from southern california, as they head into a tense night. miguel, thanks. now, back east to

washington. john brennan, president obama's choice to head the cia in the second term, was grilled by both democrats and republicans at a confirmation hearing today. and it got off to a raucous and noisy start, with protesters and questions about the agency's controversial drone policy and interrogation programs. nbc's andrea mitchell covering in our oh washington newsroom. andrea, it's not every day you hear the order oh to have the hearing room cleared. >> reporter: not indeed. in fact, the senate historians said they can't recall this happening going back to the '60s and '70s. john brennan promised to be open to congress if he is confirmed to lead the cia. even as the white house still limited access to key documents in a hearing that did not get off to a smooth smart. >> members of the committee, i'm honored to appear before you today. [ heckling ] >> polilease remove this woman. we will recess. >> reporter: when john brennan

did get to testify, he said he opposed the harsh interrogations during the bush administration when he was at the cia. even though in 2007, brennan said those enhanced interrogation techniques, known as eits, including waterboarding, saved lives. >> what steps did you take to stop the cia from moving these techniques you found objectionable? >> i did not take steps. i was not in the chain of command of that program. i had expressed my personal objections and views to my agency colleagues about certain eits where i professed my personal objections to it, but i did not try to stop it. >> we have just not seen anybody who has come forward and say they heard any objections from you with respect to these programs. >> reporter: also under scrutiny, targeted killings by drones, a policy greatly expanded under president obama, popular at home but causing a backlash around the world. brennan rejected suggestions

that he would rather kill a terrorist with a drone than capture him. >> i respectfully disagree, senator. i never believe it's better to kill a terrorist than to detain him. >> reporter: president obama tried to remove a big obstacle to his aide's confirmation. finally today letting the senator see the legal memos justifying the targeting of al qaeda members overseas, even if they're americans. in addition to the administration's white paper disclosed this week by nbc's michael isikoff. but the senator still didn't get everything he wanted. >> theommittee stone walled on several other requests, particularly with respect to secret law. >> reporter: john brennan enjoys an especially close relationship with the president, really a friendship, and he has worked with the intelligence committee for years, so he is likely to win approval, frustrating many who want more answers about the administration's use of drones. brian? >> andrea mitchell in our d.c. newsroom tonight, thanks. as andrea pointed out, it was our own michael isikoff's exclusive reporting that

revealed the obama administration's ground rules governing its use of drones. place the topic in conversation, michael was in that hearing today and is with us from capitol hill tonight. the question, mike, how much more did we learn about the president's drone policy? >> reporter: is brian, if anybody felt we were going to learn more about targeted killings and drones today, they were disappointed in some respects. brennan said less today than he has already acknowledged in public speeches. i was listening very closely. the whole hearing. the word "drones" never left his lips. the big questions raised by that white paper are what are the standards upon which americans who are suspected of being al qaeda leaders can be targeted for killings. what constitutes an imminent threat? who gets to decide whether the secret intelligence is sound enough and whether there is any review. presumably, the memo that president obama let senators read this morning would answer some of those questions. but the memo remains classified, so the senators couldn't even ask any questions about it.

a number of them, senator wyden, senator feinstein, did press brennan to be more open, and perhaps his most memorable line, he said i want to optimize transparency, but at the same time, i want to optimize secrecy. tonight, brian, secrecy won out. >> government speaking for having it both ways. our national investigative correspondent, michael isikoff, who has led the way on reporting on this topic this week. thanks. still ahead as we continue on a thursday evening, stressed out in america. a huge response from folks across the country, especially concerning who is suffering the most and why. and later, after decades of damage and disrespect, the amazing way they are restoring one of the most beautiful places on earth. what's next? he's going to apply testosterone to his underarm. axiron, the only underarm treatment for low t, can restore testosterone levels back to normal in most men. axiron is not for use in women or anyone younger than 18. axiron can transfer to others through direct contact. women, especially those who are or who may become pregnant,

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say they are feeling it the most. our report tonight from our chief medical editor, dr. nancy snyderm snyderman. from home to the office and everywhere in between, americans are struggling with stress. results of an online survey of more than 2,000 u.s. adults over the age of 18 are giving us a revealing look at who in america is most affected. >> all of a sudden, the world is at your doorstep, and there's too many options. and it can be overwhelming. >> i think that people in our age group are more stressed out because they have lots of responsibilities. >> reporter: so-called millennials, those ages 18 to 23, are the most stressed. with 39% saying their stress increased over the past year, and 52% say it's causing them to lose sleep. we reached out to viewers today on facebook for their stories. and within a matter of minutes, hundreds of responses like this one from 24-year-old ally zimmerman who has $84 thousand in student loans. >> many of these students have come out of college or graduate

school with horrendous student debt into a job market where there are not many jobs. this has put their life plans, probably, on hiatus. they may be postponing marriage, postponing having a family. >> reporter: millennials are followed by general xors. boomers, 38 to 46 come next, and age 67 and up report levels of stress they believe are manageable. as for gender, women continue to report higher stress levels than men. >> you have a job that's demanding, kids that are demanding. yeah, you get stressed out pretty quickly. so, you know, you just -- it's just a matter of just sometimes you want to flip and lose it half the time. >> reporter: but that's a health threat scenario doctors warn against. >> stress is a huge factor when we look at medical problems such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, cardiac disease. >> in another study out today in the "british medical journal,"

researchers found an association between job stress and heart disease. but no association between workplace stress and cancer. nonetheless, brian, a laundry list to be worried about. >> nancy, thank you, as always. when we come back here tonight, planet earth is in for a close encounter next week, about as close as they get. [ coughs ] [ angry gibberish ] [ justin ] mulligan sir. mulligan. take a mulligan. i took something for my sinuses, but i still have this cough. [ male announcer ] truth is, a lot of sinus products don't treat cough. they don't? [ male announcer ] nope, but alka seltzer plus severe sinus does it treats your worst sinus symptoms, plus that annoying cough. [ angry gibberish ] [ fake coughs ] sorry that was my fault sir. [ male announcer ] alka seltzer plus severe sinus. [ breathes deeply ] ♪ oh, what a relief it is! [ male announcer ] try alka seltzer plus severe sinus day and night for complete relief from your worst sinus symptoms. i work for 47 different companies. well, technically i work for one. that company, the united states postal service®, works for thousands of home businesses.

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we learn today the faa is going to allow test flights for the boeing 787 dreamliner with only crew members on board. no paying passengers yet. the planes have been grounded since last month as investigators try to figure out what caused batteries to catch fire on two different flights. and two of the biggest names in aviation could soon become one. there are increasing reports a merger between american airlines and usairways could come as early as next week. it would create the world's largest airline. two items of space news tonight. both may cause concern, but keep in mind, there's nothing we can do about either one. first of all, an astroid the size of a 15-story building is

going to pass very close by on february 15th. it will pass so close, it's going to be beneath the altitude of orbiting satellites at about eight times the speed of a gunshot. satellite owners and operators have been notified to keep their equipment out of the way. australians will probably get the best nighttime view. second, there are predictions of a large solar storm, big enough to knock out satellites and cause earth power surges. experts at the royal academy in the u.k. say it's not if, but when we here on earth will have about 30 minutes notice when it happens. so enjoy your weekend. this is the weekend of the grammys in l.a., and a memorandum from cbs to the artists has been leaked. put it this way. it basically says cover your body parts. no curved things visible, no pointing things. and clinical terms, that means breast and buttocks. no thongs, no see-through clothing, just a reminder to some attendees not to dress the

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the redwood forests are right there in that song about this land. but after years of logging and cutting, our giant red woods are facing tough times. but a man with a plan is getting in the game to help. his story tonight from nbc's kristen dahlgren. >> reporter: towering above the ground for thousands of years, the giant redwoods were no match for man. split and sawed for timber, fewer than 5% of the genital giants are still standing. the oldest and biggest were taken first. at 30 feet across, this stump is wider than any tree living today. it once stood 40 stories tall. but over 150 years after it was chopped down, take a look. new growth. what they're now turning into a new generation. >> what this tree has, it holds potential to be as big as its parents. >> reporter: cloning the largest trees that ever lived. >> this one is perfect. kept saying, it's impossible, can't be done.

we didn't listen. >> reporter: david founded the arc angel ancient tree air kinds of. his mission, to reverse climate change by recreating the old growth forest, including redwoods and sequoias. after years of trial and error, his dream defied the experts and took root. >> from this size to that size in about two weeks. >> reporter: his lab is crowded with tiny clones, made of genetic material, gathered from those last stumps where the tops of some of the tallest tree is left. the samples are carefully cut and shipped, mixed in a secret solution of growth hormone, and along the oregon coastline, lovingly returned to the soil. so this little guy goes where? >> he's going to be stretching for 300 feet. >> reporter: that could take hundreds of years. >> the hope that this project gives the world is that we could take these trees and bring them back to life, and you can be a part of the solution. >> reporter: and in this area

once clear-cut by a power company, he says you can already see the future. kristen dahlgren, nbc news, oregon. >> and our thanks to one of our best, ray farmer, for that gorgeous photography. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night.